A meeting between Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) Chief Raj Thackeray and BJP legislator Prasad Lad on Saturday has triggered talks of alliance between the two parties in the coming BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) polls slated for 2022 with a common goal to unseat Shiv Sena which has been ruling the civic body for over two and half decades. BJP, which is now Shiv Sena’s estranged ally after the latter joined hands with the NCP and Congress to form a government in Maharashtra in 2019, has already launched Mission Mumbai 2022 by setting an ambitious target of winning Mayoral elections.
Lad, who is the close confidante of former chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, at the outset clarified that there was no political discussion in his meeting with MNS chief. However, he said, "We will do whatever we can to bring down the Shiv Sena from power.”
Even though BJP top leaders including former chief minister Devendra Fadnavis and state party chief Chandrakant Patil have repeatedly said that the party will go solo in the BMC elections, a section of the party is strongly advocating a tie-up with MNS especially by cornering Shiv Sena on Hindutva. BJP has been attacking Shiv Sena for sacrificing party supremo Bal Thackeray’s Hindutva to grab power and giving its nod for secularism in the common minimum programme of the Maha Vikas Aghadi government.
Patil has recently reiterated that unless MNS changes its stand towards north Indians BJP will not have an alliance with it. However, some party leaders argue that MNS by changing its flag to saffron has been a new entrant in the Hindutva space. MNS chief had extended his support to the new citizenship law and the proposed National Register of Citizens even as he demanded eviction of illegal Pakistani and Bangladeshi "infiltrators" from India.
Therefore, BJP will keep a vigil on MNS whether it softens its stand against the North Indians by hardening the pro-Hindu card. This will pave way for a possible tie up between BJP and MNS.
On its part, Shiv Sena has made it clear that it has not left Hindutva and said that it proposes to continue its alliance with new allies NCP and Congress in the BMC elections.
